Recently, snap fitting connectors have become popular as a means of connecting cables to electrical junction boxes. One such type of snap fitting is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,709,280 (hereinafter the '280 patent), issued Mar. 23, 2004 and incorporated in its entirety herein by reference. The snap fitting improved the functionality of the quick connect fitting by providing a snap ring with a grounding tang of a novel design that provided a tighter fit between the quick connect fitting and the junction box or panel that it connected to. The snap fitting of the '280 patent therefore improved the electrical continuity and lowered the millivolt drop between the fitting, the cable, and the junction box.
An improved snap engagement fitting was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,780,029 (hereinafter the '029 patent), issued Aug. 24, 2004 and incorporated in its entirety herein by reference. The fitting of the '029 patent improved the continuity of the snap engagement fitting by providing a snap ring including a locking tang lanced out of the grounding tang. By lancing the locking tang out of the grounding tang, a greater portion of the outer periphery of the snap ring is available for forming the grounding tang. The larger grounding tangs provide more contact between the junction box and the snap ring thereby providing improved electrical continuity and a lower millivolt drop between the fitting, the cable, and the junction box.
An improved snap engagement fitting was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,957,968 (hereinafter the '968 patent), issued Oct. 25, 2005 and incorporated in its entirety herein by reference. The fitting of the '968 patent included a flangeless connector body, which reduced the complexity and manufacturing cost of the connector body portion of the snap engagement fitting.
As described above, the snap engagement fittings of the '280 patent and the '029 patent improved the electrical continuity of snap engagement fittings and the fitting of the '968 patent provided a flangeless connector body to reduce the cost and complexity of the connector body of snap engagement fittings. The present invention combines the benefits of the aforementioned patents by providing a snap engagement fitting having improved electrical continuity and a simple, easily manufactured and low cost connector body.
These and other advantages will become apparent by reading the attached specification and claims in conjunction with reference to the attached drawings.